A list of helpful tips, tricks and short-cuts for quilters of all levels - beginners to experienced. Lots of quilt designers share their favorite tricks.
Top US quilting blog, Diary of a Quilter, features their Short-cuts for making and squaring-up multiple Half Square Triangle Quilts at once. Click here!!
This little trick is about saving those perfect corners when sewing your rows together in quilting!If you Nest Your seams you will have perfection!
Top US quilting blog, Diary of a Quilter, features their fast method using Quilt in a Day Square-Up ruler for their Half Square Triangle Quilt. Click here!
Top US quilting blog, Diary of a Quilter, features their fast method using Quilt in a Day Square-Up ruler for their Half Square Triangle Quilt. Click here!
The ultimate pocket guide to quilting, this book is packed with expert tips and tricks on equipment, short cuts, organization, color, patterns, machine quilting, and more! Providing 101 great tips for beginning quilters but also filled with new information for experienced quilters, there’s something for everyone to try! Written by a nationally-known quilting trade speaker, columnist, and consultant, author Penny Haren shares her expert knowledge and teaches you all the tricks of the trade in this convenient and compact pocket guide!
These 4 tips for quilting with minky or faux fur will help you create a luxuriously soft backing for your next quilt.
**See my updated blog post for more accurate cutting hints and handy math chart for the Magic 8!...click HERE The Magic 8 is a wonderful technique that has been around. I think it is wonderful so am sharing it with you. 1. Determine finished size of the desired half square triangle 2. Add to this number 7/8" 3. Multiply that total by 2 4. Using the total from step 3, cut one square each from 2 different fabrics My finished half square triangles will be 1-1/2" add to that, 7/8" = 2-3/8" 2-3/8" x 2 = 4-3/4" I cut two 4-3/4" squares Place right sides together and draw 2 diagonal lines corner to corner Stitch 1/4" on either side of both drawn lines Cut vertically measuring in 2-3/8". This is the measurement right down the middle. Using the same measurement of 2-3/8", carefully cut across horizontally. Don't shift the fabric! Without moving your fabric, cut corner to corner on the drawn lines. Repeat again cutting opposite corner to corner There you have it!! Nice huh?? My half square triangles measure 2" unfinished. I have one of Marsha McCloskey's Feathered Star Rulers; awesome for trimming! I have made lots of Farmer Wife Blocks using this method. Have you started or wanted to begin the Farmer's Wife Sampler Quilt? Don't like dealing with templates?? I offer an online pattern class teaching modern cutting and piecing techniques. With very few templates! Find my online class HERE
Quilt as you go tutorials QAYG and patterns including video on making QAYG quilts. Learn with these fun 26 different quilt as you go tutorials.
Top US quilting blog, Diary of a Quilter, features their fast method using Quilt in a Day Square-Up ruler for their Half Square Triangle Quilt. Click here!
Strip piecing quilts can save time and money. Top US blogger Amy Smart shares tips to accurately cut and piece fabric for fast quilt blocks.
Top US quilting blog, Diary of a Quilter, features their fast method using Quilt in a Day Square-Up ruler for their Half Square Triangle Quilt. Click here!
What your friends have never told you that will change the way you think of the Flying geese block: 4 best kept secrets to make perfect flying geese blocks every time!
Good Morning! Are you ready to row? Yay!!!! let's get started on Row One of the "Bee in my Bonnet Row Along" The first row is easy peasy:) I snapped a picture of the rough draft that I drew up when deciding how many rows would fit. You can sort of get a little better of an idea of the layout by my drawing. It shows how many rows...but not necessarily the order that they will be in. Also...it doesn't show it here...but the border will be pieced:) I hope this little sneaky peek takes a little of the mystery out of it for you! *REMINDER...we will talk about background next week. We won't use any for this row. Okay...let's get started! Let's go through my important 6 step quilting checklist together. 1. Make sure that you have a sharp blade in your rotary cutter and that your cutting mat and rulers are cute, clean and ready to use. 2. Plug in your iron..no steam please...especially when piecing small items. (A hot iron with steam tends to distort and to shrink 100% cotton fabric) 3. Make sure that your sewing machine is clean, oiled and running well.... it also wouldn't hurt to put in a new needle:) 4. Use 100% cotton thread in a neutral color (I usually use white, cream or gray). Wind your bobbin in the same thread and then wind a few more for backup:) 5. Make sure that you will be using an exact 1/4" seam allowance when stitching so that your seams line up correctly and your blocks turn out the right size. Take note that you will ALWAYS sew with a 1/4" seam allowance throughout this quilt...unless I state otherwise. 6. Turn on some groovin' tunes...and by all means make sure that there is a doctor in the house... (of course I mean Diet Dr.Pepper...haha:) When you have successfully checked off the 6 steps...you are ready to row! I like to save time and thread by chain stitching. Chain stitching means feeding fabric block segments through your machine one right after the other without clipping your thread in-between.... a real time saver. (not to mention thread saver too) After you have stitched them together.... remove them from the machine and they will look like they are hanging on a clothesline! Normally at this point ... you would clip them apart... BUT NOT THIS TIME!!! Scroll down to the next step please:) Feed them through your machine again... sewing down the opposite side of each square. Now they should look like this! Now go ahead and cut them apart by snipping the threads in between with a small pair of sharp scissors. I don't recommend using your large sewing scissors for this because it is too easy to snip into the fabric on accident. Now set the seams with your iron by pressing... always press... instead of ironing back and forth so that you will not distort your pieces. Always take note where your seam is... and cut accordingly. See?... this is what they will look like when you cut them apart. Continue... And press all of the seam allowances going one direction...normally you would press them towards the darkest fabric if possible...but it really doesn't matter for these. Don't sew the same color next to each other and... before sewing them together...make sure that your already pressed seams are going the opposite direction so that they will lay flat. ***IMPORTANT...after your strip is all sewn together...DO NOT press seam allowances yet. This is an extra piece... save it for something else! Now because you have not pressed the seam allowance...the other half will naturally fold back down...which is good... because you are going to cut again... but this time you will be cutting 2 layers at a time and a segment of 4 squares already sewn together will appear when you unfold it. Sweet!!!! Continue carefully cutting down the row... When you are finished... you're 4-patches should be accurate! If they aren't...there could only be two reasons...either your cutting is off, your seam allowance is off ...or both. Your 4-patches will need to be accurate to fit into the quilt. You will have another 2 square segment leftover at the other end after cutting them all:) Use your fingernails to open the center seam allowance... and then press them open with your iron (from the back)so that they lay nice and flat. Scrappy happy 4 patch squares:) When I am piecing tiny blocks together...I usually press my seam allowances open because I like them to be as flat as possible:) Yay!!! First row complete:) Was it fun? I thought sew!!! Please share pictures of your first row on the flickr group... click here to join! I really like this method for sewing small squares together... It's much faster, easier and more accurate than cutting a larger number of squares and sewing them together individually...right? Of course if you are doing another project...you can cut the original squares larger for bigger finished squares. If you don't want to miss any Row Along information... make sure that you scroll up... and on the right side of my blog in-between the camera and the typewriter... you will see where you can subscribe to get my posts directly into your email inbox...very convenient:) Thank you all for rowing along with me:) Until next time... xx Lori P.S. If you are new to my blog and my teaching methods...and you are wondering what the heck a design board is... click here for my explanation and tutorial. I promise...this quilt will be alot easier and more enjoyable if you use one. I made 2 of them to use when sewing the blocks for this quilt. I cut one foam core board in half and made 2 the same size... (so that I can sandwich my blocks in-between them for protection while traveling to class) ***update July 2013 The pattern and instructions for the Bee in my Bonnet Row Along Quilt are in my new book "Quilty Fun" Click here to get your copy!
Photo above © Confessions of a Fabric Addict This quilting pattern / tutorial is available for free... Full Post: A Disappearing Act!
We're up to block number ten on the Patchwork Quilt Along with the Fat Quarter Shop! This month's block pattern is called Country Roads and you can find the free block pattern here. As I sat and stitched up my blocks for this month I thought about the things I do a bit differently when I'm working with small (less than 8") quilt blocks and mini quilts. So today I wanted to share some tips - and see if you have any tips to add! Tip 1: Starch! I'm a recent convert to starching. I used to view it as an unnecessary step. Silly me. I was sewing with a friend once who starches everything and I saw how nicely her small blocks were turning out. I tried it once and was hooked. I starch the fabric a bit before I cut all of the little pieces, then I also starch the adorable little blocks when they're done. My favorite is Faultless Premium Professional Starch. Tip 2: Cut Accurately Take the time to cut each piece accurately. When I'm cutting for a larger quilt I will line up a whole cutting mat of strips and cut them all at the same time for efficiency. But when I make these tiny blocks, I take my time and cut just one or two pieces at a time. I've found that cutting less at a time helps with accuracy. Also, with larger blocks and larger pieces of fabric sometimes you can fudge things a little and the block will still look fine. But when working with such tiny pieces, each 1/8 of an inch makes a big difference! Tip 3: Use Thinner Thread I used to think that the thread I used didn't make much of a difference. I would try to match the thread color to the colors of the fabrics, but other than that I didn't put much thought into my thread choice. The first few blocks of this quilt along, I had problems with my block seams looking and feeling so bulky. They just wouldn't press as flat as I wanted them. Changing out my thread to a thinner thread made a difference! Now when I'm working with small blocks I make sure to swap out my thread. My current favorite is Aurifil 50/2 (50 weight thread, 2 ply.) To learn more about thread weight, there's a great article here on the Connecting Threads blog. Tip 4: Adjust The Seam Allowance Each machine, each presser foot, and each quilter seems to have a slightly different 1/4" seam allowance. I have a foot that works for my regular piecing, but when I'm piecing small quilt blocks I have to move my seam allowance over just a thread or two. Just that tiny bit helps! And if you think about it, with these blocks sometimes we'll have four seams across the 5.5" width of the block. A thread or two difference in each seam can add up, and make the difference between a 5.5" block and a 5.25" block! Tip 5: Press Seams This may seem like a common sense one to you, but when there are pressing recommendations as a part of the quilt pattern I pay attention! Usually when I disregard them- thinking I know better, then the block doesn't lay quite right, or piece as accurately as it could. If there are no pressing directions in the pattern, then take a minute to think about how the block will go together. Press seams so they will nest if possible. Tip 6: Use Small Scale Prints Ok so this isn't really a tip that will make your piecing more accurate, but it still fits in this list! Small scale prints work great with small scale blocks. You absolutely can use large scale prints in small blocks, but you'll lose some of the best parts of the large scale print when you have to cut it up into small 1.5" x 1.5" pieces. That being said, use what you want! There's been times when I love the print so much I use it anyway. See the red block below? You can't really tell that those are sailboats, right? The print I used in the second photo is much more effective for the small block. It's just something to consider when selecting fabrics for your small quilt blocks & mini quilts. So there you go - my favorite tips for piecing small quilt blocks. Have any tips you'd like to add? And if you're sewing along with us, be sure to visit the Patchwork QAL Facebook group and add a photo of your blocks! Want to see more inspiration? Visit the list of bloggers who are also joining in the quilt along: Amanda from Jedi Craft Girl (@jedicraftgirl) Amy of Diary of a Quilter (@diaryofaquilter) Andy of A Bright Corner (@abrightcorner) *Bonnie of Cotton Way (@bonniecottonway) *Camille of Thimble Blossoms (@thimbleblossoms) Debbie of Happy Little Cottage (@happylittlecottage1) Greg of Grey Dogwood Studio (@greydogwoodstudio) Heidi of Buttons and Butterflies (@buttonsandbutterflies) Melissa of Happy Quilting (@happyquiltingmc) Melissa of Oh How Sweet (@ohhowsweet) Pat Sloan of PatSloan.com (@quilterpatsloan) Renee of Sewn with Grace (@sewnwithgrace) Sedef of Down Grapevine Lane (@downgrapevinelane) Sherri of A Quilting Life (@aquiltinglife) Sondra of Out of the Blue Quilts (@sondradavison) Taunja of Carried Away Quilting (@taunjalynn) Tina of Emily Ann's Kloset (@emilyannskloset) Carrie Nelson/Miss Rosie of Moda Cutting Table
By Melissa I started Denyse Schmidt's Proverbial Quilt a few weeks ago with some marathon prepping and some agonizing over which words were really important enough to commit to a whole freaking quilt. This is not a short cut project. I don't know anyone else who is making it (are you?), so I spent a good amount of time trying to figure out the most efficient way of getting all those letters organized, cut and sewn without wanting to quit part way through. I also made up this free pattern into a pillow for my mom, just to see how...
Today Leanne from she can quilt and Marci from Marci Girl Designs are blogging together as a guest post on Lily's Quilts . All the ...
Does this situation sound familiar? You're happily machine quilting away, snipping the last threads and getting ready to bury all those tails when you realize that you cut some of them way too short. You wonder just what made you think quilting late at night (or while watching Netflix, or under-caffeinated - pick your
(Please note that this post contains affiliate links.) (These fabrics have all been recently bought from Sew Stitching Happy. See the bottom of this post for fabric names.) My very favorite part of…
I first read about how to make this block in a book but I then came across this video, Exploding Block, by Jenny Doan from the Missouri Star Quilt Company. It’s fast and fun, however I use a…
Quilting 101 Basics - free tutorial how to choose batting, baste and stitch the layers of a quilt together. Hand quilting vs. Machine quilting options.
Fabric pre-cuts make sewing quilts and other crafts a snap. I am taking the mystery out of pre-cut fabric sets and giving you tons of ways to use them.
Learn how to make a quilt using cheesecloth fabric. Heather Thomas shows you how and gives you tips for finding, preparing and working with this fabric.
Find lots of EASY quilt block tutorials that are perfect for beginners. These blocks might look hard to make, but they're perfect for the new quilter.
Frustrated by quilt blocks that turn out the wrong size? Learn to sew a scant quarter-inch seam and make your quilts come out right. #quilting #quarterinchseam
Using the wrong tools to mark your quilts can ruin your quilt! Continue reading for a full list of methods for how to mark a quilt.
In this video we explain the benefits of using a color wheel when selecting quilt colors.
Wondering how to make a tradtional Manx Quilt Block? Top US quilting blog, Diary of a Quilter, features their step by step guide. Click here now!!
Last week I posted a free tutorial on how to make a very easy orange peel shape and how to use it in a 12 inch block. Once you know the technique it will revolutionize the way you make this shape. If you missed my Part 1 tutorial blogpost you can read it by clicking here. This week 's blogpost is the Free Tutorial - Orange Peel Perfection Part 2 . In this blogpost I will be sharing edge finishing techniques and block variations, so let's get started! Once you have adhered your orange peels to your blocks you will need to finish the edges to secure them well. This can be done in a number of ways. You can do it by hand stitching, creating the look of needle-turn applique. This edge finish is very neat and almost invisible . I know it is hard to take your eyes off the gorgeous hare in this Tula Pinkfabric but if you can look at the stitches on the edge it really does look like a very neat needle-turned edge but without all the hard work! Oh how I love a good cheat technique! The blocks look great done in this way.... If you are in a hurry, or just prefer to use your machine, as I often do, then you may want to machine finish your edges. You could use a buttonhole stitch , or a small zigzag stitch. I prefer a small zigzag stitch using Superior Mono. Poly thread. Stitch length 2.5 Stitch width 2.0 It can be seen, but when the blocks are laid out it does not detract from the overall look of the blocks. . The advantage of this finish is the speed of its execution. This week I have completed a few more blocks and have been playing around with placement. I have also been playing with a few different sizes of orange peel shapes and arranging them in different ways to make new blocks. I hope you like them. Thank you for visiting my blog. I am so glad you did! Happy sewing, love Miriamx
Get inspired with this list of 25 free fat quarter quilt patterns! From beginner to intermediate, there's a pattern for everyone.
The first step is choosing a quilt pattern for your quilt top. In this post, we discuss the various types of patterns that are available.
(Please note that affiliate links have been used in this post.) I started quilting in 2007 / 2008. My sisters bought me a small Singer Promise they found listed as a Black Friday deal from Target o…
We love our stashes. We don't want to say goodbye to any of our fabric. Sometimes, we love looking at it so much that we can't even bring ourselves to quilt with certain fabrics. But sometimes, there are fabrics in our stash that deserve a new lease on life. (This post contains affiliate
Ever wondered what a Quilter's "Flying Geese" was and why its called that? See the simple steps how you can make them! - FREE Beginner Friendly Patterns!
There's two things that we quilters never have enough of, time and fabric. I'm always looking for ways to have more of both. The decision earlier in the week to save time making HST's was an impulse decision. After having time to think it through it became clear to me that I was making excuses to not stick with my plan. The plan: Make the Good Fortune Mystery quilt as scrappy as I can using as many fabrics from my scrap bin as possible. In order to do stay with the plan I need to find a way to make quick HST's from smaller pieces. No one says that all the HST's need to be assemble using same technique for each one. The suggested technique in the pattern of cutting from strips is great if I have strips to use. The Magic 8 technique is a perfectly good plan for larger pieces of fabric. But what about those scrap pieces of fabric that neither strips or Magic 8 will accommodate? Most of you have made two HST's at a time by drawing a line from corner to corner on one piece of fabric. Then it's layered with another piece and stitch 1/4" way from both sides of the line. The draw back to that method is drawing all the lines, it so time consuming. How about we don't draw them! Yes no lines! Lets do it! First we need to know how big the squares need to be to finished at the correct size. Well by the magic of math and computer software I've drawn up a little printable for us to use. It's free for you to print and add to your tips and tricks pile of goodies. I'll be putting mine in a 3 ring binder so I left plenty of room on the edge for punching holes. Click here to download, save or print. Another time saver is having the HST's finish at the correct size. Trimming down oodles of HST's is not time friendly. Because of this the measurements are not the common 1/4, 1/2 or 3/4 used in most quilt patterns. No biggie! I added a little ruler to the print out to help keep us cutting accurately. I've also included basic instructions for drawing the line, but we aren't going to need that line. We will also need something with straight lines to place on the bed of your sewing machine. Both of the guides below are perfectly acceptable if you have them and can make them work. I however have them and don't use them. My sewing machine bed is not flat enough for either of these. I've tried every trick suggested and still my fabric gets hung up at the arrows shown below. So if you don't have the above items I'm gonna show you a quick easy and cheap way to make one. It's not as pretty and doesn't have all those lines on it that you don't need, but it works! You will need 1. clear packing tape 2. a pen or sharp tip marker 3. a rotary cutter 4. a ruler 5. a quarter inch presser foot Here's my quarter inch foot. You don't have to have this type of foot but you do need be able to adjust your machine so there is a 1/4" from the needle to the edge of the foot. Let's make this, fast and easy, I promise. Place a piece of the clear tape on your cutting mat. Line it up as best you can with the lines on the mat. How long? Go longer than needed you can always cut down to size later. Tape is so cheap, toss a few inches in the trash is no big deal. Draw a line close to ends. This is your stop sign so you don't accidentally draw on your cutting mat. Next we are going to draw a long line down the middle of the tape. Use the lines on the mat for reference. I tried to draw my line exactly on top of the one on the mat. To do that the ruler had to be set off to the side of the line on the mat. It should look like this. Draw two more lines 1/4" away from the previous line. One on each side. That's it! Now we just need to protect those lines by layering another piece of tape on top of the one on the cutting mat. Carefully remove the tape from the mat and it's ready to place on the bed of the machine. Years go before I bought my new sewing machine I would draw these line right on the bed of my machine. It was amazing how quickly the lines would get worn away by the fabric. But using the tape makes them last a long time. How long? The one you see on the bed of my sewing machine has been there so long I can't remember just how long its been. I'm not going to replace it today. So what you need to do is set up your machine for sewing a 1/4" seam. Remember we will be using the edge of the foot as the guide. If you need to move the needle do it before you put the tape on the bed of your machine. MY MACHINE IN THE PICTURE IS NOT SET UP CORRECTLY. WRONG PRESSER FOOT. BUT MY LINES ARE CORRECT. Once you are set up to sew then line up the middle line on the tape with your needle. Get it as close to the needle as you can without covering the feed dogs. I used a mini razor knife to cut the tap around the bobbin door. See it comes right out! I replace the bobbin and away I go! Now when I need to get in there and clean out lint, I carefully peel the tape back just enough to remove the gray cover. Okay we're ready to sew! Use the chart to cut the needed size fabric. Notice I'm not using my Good Fortune fabrics? This is a test run, so I'm using scraps that were laying on the cutting table. I've cut for a 3 inch unfinished HST's. I changed my presser foot and I'm ready. Line up the top corner point with the edge of the presser foot. Line up the opposite corner with the line on the far right. Take one or two stitches, stop and never look at the needle again. You want to watch the bottom corner as the machine feeds the fabric through making sure the tip of the corner stays on the line.. You can chain piece as many as you need before turning them all around and sewing the other side. Remember to line up one corner with the edge of your foot and the other corner with the line. One or two stitches stop and watch the bottom corner only. The machine will take care of the rest. There should be 1/2" between the two lines. Now cut right down the middle. Press and trim away those little wings! Tada! No marking! So much time is saved using this method and I can use more of my scraps in my quilt. Now let me really give you a time saver tip. The Magic 8 HST's can be made using this same method if your sewing machine bed will accommodate the squares of fabric on point as well as the taped lines. This post has been linked to the following. Hop on over to see creative bloggers strutting their stuff! https://conniekresin.com/2018/12/linky-tuesday-december-4th.html #nomarkinghst's #quilttutorial #podunkpretties #diyquilttemplate Pin It
The quarter-square triangle magically turns into so many varieties of the disappearing quilt block. Come and explore these! Brother Innov-is BQ3050. Free Pattern.
I totally do! The table shakes and all the fabric bits are flying everywhere. The fabric bits is where it begins.
I promised a tutorial for the string blocks and I had second thoughts.....why try to improve on my original source. The very best pla...
Precuts-friendly (Jelly Roll or Rolie Polie) baby quilt tutorial. Beginner friendly. Step by step DIY quilt pattern. Featuring Vintage Adventure fabric.
